The Berenstain Bears and the Galloping Ghost Read online

  Miss Mamie’s mortgage was taken over again by Great Grizzly National Bank. That made her very happy. But she was still behind on her payments. She wanted to put an end to that, once and for all.

  Soon the day of the big show arrived. The Greatest Horse Show on Earth was open for business! Bears from all over Bear Country crowded onto the grounds of Miss Mamie’s Riding Academy. A huge riding ring had been set up in the middle of the front lawn. Miss Mamie’s assistants, then her students, performed for the crowd. And even though they were the newest students, Brother and Sister did themselves proud. Mama and Papa Bear beamed as they watched.

  The big show was such a success that enough money was raised for the late mortgage payment—just from the sale of admission tickets alone. But there was much more to see than just the horse show. Around the riding ring were booths of all kinds: ring tosses, weight guessers, fortune-tellers. The longest line of all was at Ralph Ripoff’s shell game. From dawn to dusk, Ralph’s booming voice rang out over the crowd: “Step right up, ladies and gents! Try your luck! The hand is quicker than the eye! Now you see it, now you don’t!” By closing time, Ralph had raised enough money all by himself to pay another month of Miss Mamie’s mortgage.

  But the biggest attraction of all was one that no one had planned. It was Miss Mamie herself. With a big friendly smile, the grand old lady went from bear to bear, thanking one and all for their support. And the amazing thing was that she wasn’t limping. That’s because she was riding the beautiful Flash!

  Miss Mamie was so glad to keep her riding academy that for the first time in nine long years, she had found the courage to get back in the saddle.

  About the Authors

  Stan and Jan Berenstain began writing the Berenstain Bears series in 1962, with The Big Honey Hunt. Since then, more than 250 Berenstain Bears books have been published and sales of the series are nearing 300 million. Stan and Jan have left behind a legacy of arguably the best-selling children’s book series ever. Making the books has long been a family affair, with son Mike Berenstain writing and illustrating new stories about everyone’s favorite bear family. You can visit the Berenstains online at www.berenstainbears.com.

  Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins authors and artists.

  Chapter 1

  A Gruesome Twosome?

  Most of the Bear Country cubs loved summer more than any other season. Summer meant fun. It meant warm weather, games, summer camp—and, best of all, no school.

  Not that school was all bad. It could be very interesting. But it could also be boring. And when it was boring, all you could do was wait for it to get interesting again.

  It was different being bored in the summer, especially before summer camp started. Instead of sitting in the school cafeteria at lunch staring at your shepherd’s pie, you could get together with your friends for burgers and shakes at the Burger Bear. You could even plan something fun for after lunch.

  And that’s exactly what Brother and Sister Bear, Cousin Fred, and Queenie McBear did one bright summer day. They sat in their favorite booth at the Burger Bear and traded ideas.

  Brother wanted to get teams together for a softball game. Sister wanted to fly kites. Queenie was so set on spending the afternoon playing video games at the mall that Brother and Sister finally agreed on that. But Fred was against all video games.

  “They just rot your brain,” he said. “Even softball is better for the mind.”

  “Oh, yeah?” said Queenie. “How?”

  “The machine keeps score for you in a video game,” said Fred. “In softball, at least, you have to keep count of balls and strikes all by yourself.”

  “Oh, gimme a break!” moaned Queenie. She turned away from Fred in disgust and looked out the window. “Hey, look,” she said, pointing across the street at the front entrance of Bear Country Hospital. “Isn’t that Mama and Papa Bear coming out of the hospital? What’s wrong, Brother? Is Grizzly Gramps or Gran sick?”

  “No, they’re fine,” said Brother. “Mama and Papa are on the hospital building–fund committee. They just had a meeting.”

  Brother explained that Dr. Gert Grizzly, president of the hospital, was trying to raise money to build a new wing for the hospital. He pointed to a sign on the hospital lawn. It showed a big thermometer with the red mercury inside shooting up through a dollar sign.

  “Nice sign,” said Cousin Fred. “Clever, isn’t it, Queenie?”

  But Queenie wasn’t looking at the sign. She had her eye on the hospital entrance. “Hey, there’s Dr. Gert,” she said. “And look who she’s with!”

  “Ralph Ripoff!” said Sister with a gasp. Ralph was the town’s biggest small-time crook.

  The cubs just stared for a moment. There was Dr. Gert Grizzly, one of Bear Country’s most honest and respected citizens, talking with the famous swindler. It was indeed a strange sight. And they weren’t just talking. Ralph was all smiles and chuckles, and Gert was smiling back. She was even giggling.

  “Do you think they’re a twosome?” Fred asked Queenie.

  “A gruesome twosome, if you ask me,” said Queenie.

  “Maybe Ralph has eyes for Dr. Gert,” said Sister.

  Brother shook his head. “The only thing Ralph has eyes for, Sis, is other bears’ money.”

  “But Dr. Gert is hanging on Ralph’s every word,” said Queenie. “That kind of worries me.”

  “Dr. Gert is a real smart cookie,” said Fred. “She’s not going to fall for any of Ralph’s schemes.”

  “Probably not,” agreed Queenie. “But maybe she’s falling for Ralph.”

  The cubs watched as Ralph and Dr. Gert walked slowly down the street, chatting as they went. They stopped at a popular restaurant. Ralph opened the front door for Dr. Gert and followed her inside.

  “Looks like they’re having lunch at The Red Lantern,” said Brother. “Let’s go take a peek.”

  The cubs paid for their lunches and hurried down the street to The Red Lantern. White curtains hung from a thick brass curtain rod along the lower part of the restaurant’s wide front window. The cubs got on their tiptoes to peek over the curtains.

  “There they are,” said Queenie. “At the back, over in the corner.”

  Ralph and Dr. Gert had settled into a cozy booth. They were still chatting happily.

  “What do you think’s going on?” asked Sister.

  “Beats me,” said Brother. “And I don’t think we’re going to find out as long as they’re in there. Unless, that is, one of you can hear through windows.”

  Deep in thought, the cubs headed back down the street. No one said a word until they passed the big sign on the hospital lawn.

  “Stop!” cried Queenie all of a sudden. She pointed at the sign. “Raising money,” she said. “Ralph Ripoff and raising money … anyone see a connection?”

  The cubs were silent.

  “Come on, guys,” said Queenie. “Use your heads! Why do you think Ralph would be so charming to someone who is trying to raise a lot of money?”

  “Hmm,” said Cousin Fred. “I see what you mean.” He thought for a moment, then shook his head. “But not even Ralph could expect to get his hands on the money Dr. Gert’s raising for the new hospital wing.”

  “I sure hope you’re right,” said Queenie.

  “So, what’re we doing this afternoon?” asked Fred.

  “I don’t know,” said Queenie. “You really shot down my video game idea, that’s for sure. But I thought it over, and it does make sense, what you said about them rotting our brains. Too bad, though. I hear there’s a brand-new Stargazer game at the mall. They say it’s great for astronomy buffs …” Queenie winked at Brother and Sister.

  Fred looked off into the sky as if he were gazing at distant stars. “Well,” he said, “maybe for a few minutes …”

  “Great!” said Queenie. “Let’s go!”

  As the cubs took off for the mall, Ralph Ripoff and Dr. Gert Grizzly were sharing a king-size baked sal
mon at The Red Lantern.

  “Now that you mention it, dear,” Ralph was saying, “I’ve had some experience in separating folks from their mon—er, raising funds. I just might have some ideas about how to raise money for your new hospital wing.”

  “That’s wonderful, Ralph!” said Gert. “Please, tell me!”

  Copyright

  The Berenstain Bears and the Galloping Ghost

  Copyright © 1994 by Berenstain Publishing, Inc.

  All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

  EPub Edition © 2012

  ISBN 978-0-06-218855-7

  EPub Edition © AUGUST 2012 ISBN: 9780062188557

  10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  First Edition

  Originally published in 1994 by Random House, Inc.

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